The COVID-19 pandemic has made life difficult for everyone.
People have lost jobs, possessions, homes, relationships, and the ability to socialize.
Now, put yourself in the shoes of a recent immigrant to Canada — maybe a family who had just moved to this country before the pandemic hit because of appalling conditions in their birth country.
You are in a new place, with very few friends, and lack the ability to communicate.
“It does take 15 years for a newcomer to truly integrate into their community,” stressed South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services program manager Cherry Fernandez Tuesday morning. “In a smaller community in a rural setting, that time is extended because we don’t have those larger supports you might see in bigger communities.”
SOICS is there to help — with out-reach services in Keremeos, Princeton, Osoyoos and Summerland.
“People often mistaken us for immigration. We are not immigration. We’re an immigrant-serving organization,” added Fernandez. “We work with permanent residents, naturalized Canadians, and temporary foreign workers. We work on their settlement needs in many different ways.
“We hope to be that first stop for newcomers to come in, and we can help them on their settlement journey.”
SOICS accomplishes that in many ways, by supporting employment, orientation to Canadian systems, skill-building workshops, language supports, and local immigration partnerships.
“We're basically a one-stop shop. We're housed in one building here in Penticton and another in Oliver, where all our services are available, and we have a team that works very collaboratively,” said Fernandez. “When we know there’s a client who needs access to something in particular, they’re able to work together to make sure they get that access.”
COVID-19 has certainly changed how South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services connects with its clients.
“We are looking forward to one day pick up again in person, but everything has gone online, and we’ve found we have become so accessible. We had one workshop in the past where there were maybe 30. Now we’re up to 800 in one workshop,” explained Fernandez. “Everybody is trying to seek that information and find out what the guidelines are right now. Or. maybe I'm a newcomer here, but I have a small business. What is the government telling me to do to ensure that our staff and customers are safe?”
South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services has a team of 20 people — ranging from a local immigration partnership coordinator, to Linc, which is the language instruction for newcomers to Canada. There is also occupational-specific language training to help immigrants move up in their job field.
“And then we have our settlement workers. They cover a wide range. We have so many inquiries and we’re not experts at everything. But we have the connections or know where to look to find those connections,” explained Fernandez. “We can support someone in preparing to get their Canadian citizenship by letting them know the type of questions the exam will have, and the type of requirements to become Canadian citizens.
“We can explain how to start a small business, how to connect with community partners, like Community Futures, and say ‘we have this person, what can you do’. They themselves wouldn’t know what’s available here because they’re new.”
SOICS, located at 340 Ellis St., and 583 Fairview Road in Oliver, has a vast office space in Penticton filled with mini classrooms which can be opened up to allow for larger group gatherings.
There’s also an area for children to go, allowing parents to get the valuable information they desire to integrate into the community while their children are being looked after.
South Okanagan Immigrant and Community Services recently completed a video which demonstrates strength in diversity as One Community and One World in the South Okanagan-Similkameen.
Check back for a follow-up story to explain more of what SOICS accomplishes with its many diverse programs.
